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A microfabricated electroosmotic pump coupled to a gas-diffusion microchip for flow injection analysis of ammonia

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Abstract

We have microfabricated two functional components toward developing a microchip flow injection analysis (FIA) system, i.e., an open-channel electroosmotic pump and a gas-diffusion chip, consisting of two microfabricated glass wafers and a porous polytetrafluoroethylene membrane. This is the first application of gas-diffusion separation in a microchip FIA system. To demonstrate the feasibility of using these two components for performing gas-diffusion FIA, we have incorporated them together with a regular FIA injection valve and a capillary electrophoresis absorbance detector in a flow injection system for determination of ammonia in environmental water samples. This system has a limit of detection of 0.10 mg L−1 NH3, with a good repeatability (relative standard deviation of less than 5 % for 4.0 mg L−1 NH3). Parameters affecting its performance are also discussed.

A gas-diffusion microchip was fabricated for the first time and incorporated in a flow injection analysis (FIA) system with an open-channel electroosmotic pump, which was used successfully for the determination of ammonia in environmental water samples.

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Acknowledgments

This work is partially sponsored by the Department of Energy (DE-SC0006351), National Science Foundation (CHE 1011957), and the National Institutes of Health (R21GM104526). The authors are also grateful to the Australian Research Council for financial support (ARC Linkage Project 110200595).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, 73019, USA

    Zaifang Zhu, Joann J. Lu & Shaorong Liu

  2. School of Chemistry, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria, 3010, Australia

    M. Inês G. S. Almeida & Spas D. Kolev

  3. College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, Gansu, 730000, People’s Republic of China

    Qiaosheng Pu

Authors
  1. Zaifang Zhu
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  2. Joann J. Lu
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  3. M. Inês G. S. Almeida
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  4. Qiaosheng Pu
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  5. Spas D. Kolev
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  6. Shaorong Liu
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Spas D. Kolev or Shaorong Liu.

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Zhu, Z., Lu, J.J., Almeida, M.I.G.S. et al. A microfabricated electroosmotic pump coupled to a gas-diffusion microchip for flow injection analysis of ammonia. Microchim Acta 182, 1063–1070 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-014-1410-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00604-014-1410-7

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